General trip description

Expedition route: Kathmandu, Tumlingtar, Makalu BC, Sherpani Col, Baruntse, West Col, Mingbo la, Namche bazar, Lukla, Kathmandu

In this expedition you will fly to the tiny airstrip of Tumlingtar using a small STOL aircraft. This trip takes you through different climate zones, starting from the low, tropical area’s through warm and humid area’s, little villages, beautiful green valleys, wild forests where the ground can get muddy and slippery, across suspension bridges and wild rivers to remote and icy alpine area’s. The first high pass in this trip is the Shipton La (4127m), covering three different sub-passes. After crossing the Shipton La, the vegetation changes and you’ll be trekking gradually up through grassy, sandy valleys with lots of boulders. Makalu Base Camp itself is located in a large flat, sandy valley surrounded by giant rocky mountains, moraines and snow and ice. Above Makalu Base Camp ice, snow and rock dominate even wilder alpine scenery. You’ll be trekking and climbing in this isolated terrain, crossing the steep Sherpani Col (mixed rock/snow at 40-60 dgrees), down to the flat Baruntse glacier and the ABC somewhere below the South-East Ridge. From ABC the snow slopes are getting steeper (35 degrees) until a col where the first camp will be placed. From camp 1 to the summit the route steepens with short, but steep ice steps with an angle of 45 to 50 degrees and some rocky sections that require scrambling. Some narrow and sharp ridge sections lead to the crux of the ascent, a possible difficult ice cliff. This cliff has been a problematic obstacle for several expeditions in previous years. Getting across this cliff, a wider and easy ridge leads to the summit. Descent by the same route, crossing the steep West Col (200m abseil) and a long and tiring rocky ridge to the base camp. From the base camp you will have to descent even more across a moraine glacier and more rocky areas to the bottom of the Honku valley. Mingbo La is reached by climbing huge moraines and a beautiful, but tiring glacier. A short, steep rock section leads to the pass, from which you will have to rappel down steeply on solid snow and big flat rocks (200m). The broken Nare glacier changes every season, so trail finding may be difficult as well as the icy descent itself. As soon as you leave the ice, you will continue to descent across huge boulders and slippery rock sections. There are no trails here, although stone cairns show you the right direction. After a while easy, sandy trails appear again which lead you to Ama Dablam’s base camp and all the way down to the main Everest trail. It’s a long descent! In the last days you’ll trek back to warmer valleys, through forests, across easy trails and tiring passes, all the way back to Namche Bazar and Lukla. The slopes in this trip can be steep so now and then. Landslides and falling rocks are possible at certain stages.

Team composition

This expedition is organized in classic expedition style. Classic expedition style means that the summit is approached by establishing different camps on the mountain: base camp, advanced base camp and one or more high camps.

Within our full expedition service - package, the expedition is led by an experienced Nepalese expedition leader, supported by a strong and experienced team of climbing Sherpa’s, cooks, a liaisons officer, drivers, yak drivers. The expedition leader has managed many Himalayan expeditions and has climbed Baruntse or mountains of equal altitude and difficulty himself. A strong team of experienced climbing Sherpa’s prepares and secures the climbing route, establishes al camps and carries all equipment & food up and down the mountain. Check the different, available service packages to see what is included and not included.

Well developed and proven trekking, climbing and acclimatization schedules with sufficient rest & acclimatization days guarantee the safety and the highest chance to reach the summit in this expedition. The strategy and all options will be discussed on the way.

Minimum / maximum group size:
- Private expeditions: no limit
- Fixed departure expeditions: minimum 3 members / maximum:12 members

Experience & skills

The trek to Sherpani Col does not require specific experience or skills. You just should feel comfortable walking on steep, rocky, slippery and unstable terrain. Crossing Sherpani Col involves some short, but steep rock, snow & ice sections with an angle of 40-60 degrees. The descent to the Baruntse glacier is steep on mixed terrain. Climbing Baruntse is not very technical as most of the slopes do not exceed an angle of 30 to 50 degrees. However, there are a few, short, technical climbing sections of steep rock and hard ice. The descent of the West Col and Mingbo La requires a steep and long abseil. Descending Nare glacier requires smart route finding in a heavily crevassed area. To ensure safety, ropes will be fixed at all difficult sections. You should feel comfortable with basic rock and alpine climbing techniques in winter conditions, preferably at higher altitude. This includes the following techniques: using ice axe and crampons, abseiling. View the trip’s difficulty for more details.

This expedition is open for climbers with previous mountaineering experience at higher altitudes (6000-6500m). As you’re part of a group during difficult situations and demanding activities, you must have experience in working and living in and with a group of people who share the same, common goal. An easy going, flexible attitude is a must.

* Note 7000m peaks: This mountain is more than 7000m high. Climbing to 7000m may involve possible health problems, lethargy and extreme weather conditions.

Equipment list

After booking all expedition members will receive a final equipment list detailing all necessary clothing and (climbing) equipment to be individually provided. You may download an example list on this page (right top).

Best season, climate, temperatures

Indication of best seasons to make this trip (stable weather and clear views):
- Spring: mid March, April, early May
- Autumn: October, November

Indication of temperatures: (depending on weather conditions)
- Below 5000m varying from: Day time: +10ºC / +30ºC. Night time: -5ºC / +15ºC
- Above 5000m varying from: Day time: -5ºC / +10ºC. Night time: -15ºC / -25ºC

Deep snow at Shipton La may be expected in (early) spring. Rain may be expected in the lower areas from Tumlingtar to Shipton La in early October. Mountain storms are unpredictable and can arise quickly, changing trekking & climbing conditions dramatically. Rain, snow and strong winds are always possible.